In 1991, when Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham made a rare foray to the stage at New York’s Bottom Line, I was lucky to be in the audience, and ever since have pined to secure the magic of that night on record. The wait is over.
Penn, he of the astonishingly soulful vocals, and Oldham, potentate of the slow-groove Wurlitzer, are behind-the-scene types who rarely step into the spotlight, yet are responsible for sublime pop and soul songs. During a rare tour recently, someone had the wisdom to roll tape.
In the hands of Penn/Oldham, even relative trifles such as the Box Tops hit “Cry Like A Baby” or James & Bobby Purify’s “I’m Your Puppet” gain a soulful gravity that humbles the hitmakers. On “I Met Her In Church” and “Memphis Women And Chicken”, the veterans testify that they’ve mastered funk better than any of the current crop of R&B chart-toppers ever will.
In one of the few audience asides, Penn graciously tips his hat to James Carr’s version of Penn’s own “Dark End Of The Street”, and then casually equals Carr’s classic recording. Likewise, Penn/Oldham’s take on “Do Right Woman” won’t make you forget Aretha Franklin, but you might think twice when choosing the definitive version.
Unfortunately, Penn didn’t select any cuts from his undervalued 1973 solo album Nobody’s Fool; I’d love to hear a bare-bones treatment of “If Love Was Money”. But that’s nitpicking; Moments From This Theatre is a master class with two great soul men.
